On Thin Ice. Debra Brown Lee

the snowdrifts deepened, Seth grabbed her gloved hand and guided her on, sheltering her from the wind with his body. He was so…what was the word? Chivalrous came to mind.

      She recalled the last time she and Crocker had been caught in a snowstorm. It was during that awful ski vacation in the Alps. She had wanted to ski down the mountain, leaving space on the cable car for children and seniors who hadn’t the stamina to brave the weather. But Crocker wouldn’t hear of it. He’d pushed his way onto the car. Lauren was so angry at him, she’d skied down alone.

      As Seth’s grip on her tightened, she felt a warm sort of satisfaction blossom inside her. No man had ever gone out of his way to protect her before. Well, not since she was a kid and her father was alive.

      “Wait here!” Seth shouted over the wind. He ducked inside the back door to the machine shop and emerged thirty seconds later with a pair of bolt cutters. Of course! The sat-comm shack was always locked for security reasons. Jack Salvio had the only key.

      Together they rounded the corner and peeked between the buildings. No one was around. He pulled her into the tight space between the two steel structures. “Come on.”

      A dozen paces later they stopped dead. The door to the sat-comm shack was cracked, light spilling from inside. The heavy padlock lay open on the ground.

      The door crashed wide, and Lauren’s heart leaped to her throat. Seth pushed her hard against the wall of the shack and flattened his body over hers. It was dark, and if they were lucky—